Divided

Sophy: Aki's goodbye

All she did was run, as fast as she could till she reached the lake. Her chest hurt, and she coughed. She coughed blood onto the forest floor and walks to the edge of the dock. She sat, looking at the crystal waters. The moon danced in the calm waves, rising and falling with the ripples. The moonlight cast a bluish glow on the surrounding trees. The wind blew a calming breeze, the scent of strawberries carried through the air. It was sickeningly sweet.

Sophy felt at ease. She took a deep, labored breath. She crossed her legs, steadied her breathing as best she could and tried to meditate.

She couldn't focus. Everything was too much for her. The creaking of someone's steps on the dock didn't help either.

They chuckled. It was Aki. "Remeber how you tried to drown me when we first met. We touched fingers then that spark happened, and you pushed me in the lake."

Sophy laughed, tears trickled down her face. "You scared me and were close. What was I supposed to do? Little five year old in a new strange world, meeting her brother from a different dimension."

"Heh, true, I'll give you that one. One weird family if the five-year-old tries to drown her 12-year-old brother she just met." He chuckled. He took off his shoes and placed them on the dock, rolled up his pant legs, and sat next to Sophy. His feet gently slid into the lake.

"Who knew everything would end here, in this forest." Aki sighed.

"Yeah."

"I'm terrible at goodbyes."

"I know."

Aki glanced at Sophy, his eyes lined with tears. "I hope you can recover enough to return."

Sophy remained quiet.

"I know that's wishful thinking; Soul damage tends to be permanent. I should know." He stroked the scars running down his face.

"..."

"Ha! I'm really bad at this." Aki began to cry as he laughed. "How do I say goodbye to the best little sister in the world? How do I express how much I love you? How do I come to terms with your absence? How do I give you the advice you might need? How do I say goodbye to you?"

Aki never broke down this much. It was new to Sophy. She was stunned. His breathing was sporadic and heavy. Tears ran down his face, and he tackled Sophy in a big hug.

She began to bawl in her brother's arms. They cried for what felt like ages until they calmed down.

Aki smiled, "And I was supposed to be the tough one."

Sophy laughed. "The easy one, the least tears. Because we hate each other's guts."

Aki stood up laughing, offering his hand to her. "Sophy Marlow, I hate you so much."

"Aki Marlow!" she took his hand. "I hate you more." She grinned and punched his arm.

He rubbed the punched area and smiled. "let's go back alright. As painful as goodbyes can be, we need to do them sometimes."

Sophy's smile faded as she wiped away her tears. "I know. I just don't want to leave you all. Especially Percy."

"I know, that'll be the hard one."

"Yeah. Let's go."